Arts & Entertainment

New CAM exhibit shows pop culture's place in art

By Nick Meriwether
The Daily Cougar

Cartoons have spread across the sea of modern culture like a great oil spill. Their influence seeps everywhere, leaving a shiny, rainbow-colored sheen on everything it touches. The Contemporary Arts Museumis new exhibit celebrates the journey from tanker to shore.

Photo courtesy of Contemporary Arts Museum

Splat Boom Pow! The Influence of Cartoons in Contemporary Art features the work of 40 artists who have incorporated the style and imagery of comics and cartoons into their work.

The exhibit represents three generations of artists, providing a visual timeline of the spread and influence of the art form. The exhibit highlights the transition from the written or verbal narrative to the visual or graphic comic.

The works provide commentary from many different periods on many different subjects. Several works explore the themes of race and identity, while others comment on the social situation of their time. Beloved cartoon icons such as Donald Duck make appearances, open to either fond remembrance or biting attack. The media of the works vary, including floor sculptures, drawings, paintings, a cartoon movie segment displayed on a large screen and a series of short cartoons drawn only in pencil and shown on a small TV screen.

The works of Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein are the cornerstones of the exhibit. This comes as no real surprise, as the two are well known for their use of cartoon imagery during the 1960s. 

The show features 10 of Warholis silkscreen prints of cartoon and comic icons such as Mickey Mouse and Superman as well as two of Lichtensteinis paintings, including an enlarged comic panel titled "Forget It! Forget Me!" While these two artists have a distinct place in cartoon art, the works of several other artists are what really make this show worth attending.

Julie Mehretuis "Bombing Babylon" is full of line work and captures elements of both order and chaos. The explosions of color against the predominantly black line work provide a sense of motion. 

A piece by Jean-Michel Basquiat features large, aggressive paint strokes obscuring smaller line drawings and text with an almost ferocious result.

The exhibit's video pieces include Takashi Murakamiis looping video segment showing characters animated in Japanese pop style. Also featured is Robert Pruittis "Black Stuntman," a collection of scathing, witty short videos done in a comic style.

Sculptures by Rachel Hecker sit in the center of a walkway. The four creatures, each painted in cheery colors, stand about two-and-a-half feet tall.

The exhibit will bring childhood memories back for anyone who watched old Disney cartoons, read comic books or pretended to be Superman. 

Both art and history fans will enjoy this show, and everyone should be able to find at least one work to appreciate. 

The exhibition runs through June 29, and there will also be a film series May 10 and 11 at the Aurora Picture Show. 

Call 713-868-2101 for more information.

Splat Boom Pow! The Influence of Cartoons in Contemporary Art

Contemporary Arts Museum, 5216 Montrose Blvd.

The verdict: The showis entertaining and sometimes-serious theme makes it a must-see for anyone interested in pop culture's place in art.

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